With Hotels With Great Taste, we’re pulling back the curtain for a peek at the “special sauce” that hotels use to create memorable, meaningful culinary experiences for their guests.
During my stay at Sirikoi Lodge, I opened the front door of my cottage one afternoon to find Nditu, the orphaned female giraffe who calls Sirikoi and its surrounding area her home, munching on some trees just steps away.
While it feels somewhat cliché to refer to a hotel as magical, I can think of no better word to describe the experience of staying at this Kenyan lodge. On a typical morning, you might see a herd of elephants stopping by for a drink mere feet from where you’re enjoying your breakfast, or a pair of impalas prancing around the property.
Despite being nestled beside a watering hole amid Lewa Wildlife Conservancy’s 93,000 acres of wilderness, Sirikoi is the kind of place where you’re made to feel at home, even while encountering sights that will have you rubbing your eyes in disbelief. The gorgeous grounds, twice daily game drives, incredible wildlife sightings, and savanna sunsets were all nothing short of breathtaking.
I found myself equally captivated by Sirikoi’s food program, much of which revolves around the more than 80 fruits, vegetables, and herbs grown on the property’s organic gardens. Head chef Zachary Macharia works in tandem with head gardener George Domiano to shape the lodge’s culinary approach, and the results are fresh, nourishing meals rooted in seasonality. Think farm fresh eggs fashioned into impeccably cooked omelets or scrambles, lunches made up of a medley of colorful salads, and simple dinners where the ingredients shine.
Both Macharia and Domiano have been working at the lodge for over 15 years. Domiano’s background in regenerative agriculture and organic farming led him to Sirikoi, which had an existing garden that cofounder Sue Roberts was eager to expand and transition to a 100% organic model. A proponent of regenerative techniques like zero tillage farming, Domiano joined the team in 2011 and assumed the role of head gardener in 2012. The garden has flourished under his leadership and now supplies the majority of Sirikoi’s produce, from the citrus and passion fruit served with breakfast to the broccoli and potatoes that accompany dinner.
The region’s climate is particularly amenable to growing most fruits and vegetables year-round. Many plants that would normally struggle to propagate in the local soil are grown through grafting, a process in which the root of one plant is used to grow another.
